


you and me, babe.

by nevermindthewind



Series: this is the song that we'll sing [2]
Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: ...or babies?, Baby, F/M, Fluff with a side of angst, Pregnancy, because hello it's me, like it's ninety percent fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2018-05-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 06:57:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14688864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nevermindthewind/pseuds/nevermindthewind
Summary: Amy Santiago is not pregnant.Jake Peralta is not as easily convinced.





	you and me, babe.

**Author's Note:**

> So basically this is a follow up to "it's always gonna be you", but you really don't need to read that to understand what's going on (but you should because it's cute and i wrote it, so...).
> 
> The plan was for this fic to be shorter than the first, to be a sort of epilogue, but 23+ pages later here we are. Whoops. 
> 
> Enjoy!

_ 7 weeks 4 days _

 

Amy Santiago is not pregnant.

 

At least that’s what she tells herself as she runs to the bathroom at 6:14 am on a Sunday. 

 

It’s her third straight day of nausea and vomiting.  She’s convinced it’s food poisoning, because there is no “morning” about this sickness.  It hits at all hours, whenever and wherever it wants to rear its ugly, disgusting head.

 

So, no. Amy Santiago is not pregnant.

 

She trudges back into the bedroom once she’s done, only to see Jake sitting up in bed, his wildly excited eyes matching his impressive bedhead.

 

He’s not as easily convinced.

 

“Stop it,” she mumbles as she climbs onto the bed. 

 

“What?” he asks, feigning innocence. 

 

“I’m not pregnant.”

 

“Right, because people who are actively trying to get pregnant always puke on the reg,” he says sarcastically.

 

He has a point. She’d thrown out her birth control after the wedding, but that was less than two months ago. There’s no way she’s already pregnant. People their age go months, sometimes years without getting pregnant. They knew that. So why was Jake trying to get her all riled up?

 

“I told you my sandwich tasted funny,” she replies as she burrows further under the comforter. “Now we know I was right. And that we probably shouldn’t go to Theo’s anymore.”

 

“Number one, we can’t stop going to Theo’s. Their meatball subs are bomb. Number two, we don’t have to stop going because you didn’t get sick from your sandwich because number three, you’re with child and, ergo, you have weird taste buds.”

 

Amy rolls over onto her side to give her husband the most annoyed look she could muster as she props her head up on her hand.

 

“While I am impressed with your use of the word ergo, that doesn’t change the fact that you are wrong and that I am not, in fact, with child.”

 

Jake arches an eyebrow.

 

“Wanna bet?”

 

Amy lets out a groan.

 

“Will it get you to stop bugging me?”

 

“Ouch, Ames,” Jake says, clutching his heart. “I thought you’d enjoy a little bet between newlyweds.”

 

“Normally I would, but I’m tired and sick and bets aren’t fun when I know I’m gonna win.”

 

Jake’s eyes get softer as he brings his hand to her hair and begins to play with it.

 

“If I go buy a test will you please take it? Just so we know? If it’s negative you can brag about it for the rest of our lives, but it really would make me feel better if we could officially rule it out.”

 

Amy sighs, this time not out of frustration but contentment. Jake really knows his audience; she’d say yes to pretty much anything if he played with her hair.

 

“Okay,” she murmurs as he traces his hand down his face. 

 

“Yay!” Jake says with a tiny squeal.  He rolls off the bed and grabs a pair of jeans off the floor and throws them on. 

 

“Can you grab breakfast, too?” Amy asks as he tugs on a t-shirt. “I know a certain someone who would be very happy if you brought her a blueberry bagel.”

 

Jake smiles as he leans down to plant a kiss on her forehead. “Can do.”

 

As if on cue they hear the pitter patter of tiny feet meandering down the hallway.

 

Their door creaks open to reveal two sleepy eyes and a head of unruly curls that put Jake’s bedhead to shame. 

 

“Mama? Daddy?”

 

Jake turns around and scoops Hanna up in his arms as he clobbers her face with kisses. 

 

“Hi Hanna Banana,” Jake says in between kisses. 

 

“Hi Daddy,” Hanna laughs. She squirms around to look at Amy. “Morning, Mama.”

 

“Good morning, mija,” Amy replies with a sleepy grin. It’s then that she notices the book in her daughter’s hand. “Whatcha got there?”

 

“Hungry Caterpillar!” Hanna exclaims. She turns back to Jake. “Can we read it?”

 

“How about you and Mama read while I go get breakfast?” Jake asks as he carries Hanna over to the bed. 

 

“Blue bagels?” Hanna asks hopefully. 

 

“You know it.” Jake kisses the top of Hanna’s head before setting her next to Amy.  She immediately cuddles into Amy’s side and places the book in Amy’s lap.

 

“Okay. See ya later Daddy.”

 

“Yeah, see ya later Daddy,” Amy echoes, suppressing a grin.

 

Jake narrows his eyes at Amy, but the corners of his mouth give him away as they curl up. He gives them one final wave and then heads out.

 

“Alright Little Bear, you ready to read?” Amy asks as she opens the book.

 

“Uh-uh,” Hanna murmurs, scooching further into Amy’s side. 

 

By some miracle Hanna falls back asleep not even halfway through the book, her breathing evening out into soft snores by the time the caterpillar reaches Thursday.  Very, _ very _ carefully Amy closes the book and sets it on her nightstand.  She waits a moment before turning onto her side and wrapping her arm around Hanna, wanting nothing more than to hold her close.  Hanna had just turned three, and while there were still parts of her that were more baby than toddler, Amy knows it won’t be long before these cuddles become a thing of the past. 

 

And as she drifts off, she can’t help but wonder if eight months from now there would be another baby in bed with them.

 

\--

 

Sometime later she wakes up to someone sitting on the other side of the bed.

 

“Good morning sleeping beauties,” says Jake, running his hand through Hanna’s unruly curls.

 

Hanna rubs her eyes as she sits up and releases herself from Amy’s grip. 

 

“Hi Daddy,” she mumbles. Suddenly her eyes light up. “Blue bagels?!”

 

Jake wiggles his eyebrows. “Go to your chair and find out!”

 

Hanna launches off the bed and runs into the kitchen, leaving Amy and Jake alone.

 

“That was officially the cutest thing I’ve ever seen,” Jake says as Amy sits up. “Although, I gotta admit I was a little jealous that Han got to be the little spoon.”

 

“Well I hate to break it to you, but she’s definitely the better cuddler of the two of you,” Amy replies with a smirk.

 

“Not surprised,” says Jake. He stands up again, and that’s when Amy notices the Walgreen’s bag in his hand.  He sees her eying it gives it a shake. “You’ve got a test to take. Well, tests. I bought five.”

 

Amy sighs as she takes the bag. But she has to admit, she’s impressed.

 

“Five? Dang Peralta, I finally rubbed off on you.”

 

“I just wanted to be thorough for when I’m right,” Jake shrugs. He points to the bag. “Now go.”

 

“Fine,” Amy grumbles. “But I’m gonna be gloating so hard in about five minutes.”

 

She gingerly rolls off the bed as Jake heads back to the kitchen, her stomach still not quite back to normal.  

 

Once in the bathroom she takes out the tests and, after an impressive bit of maneuvering on her part, mangages to pee on all five sticks.  She sets them on the counter face up and starts a timer. Even though she  _ knows _ they’ll be negative, Amy can’t help but feel a twinge of excitement.

 

They could be having a baby. Hanna could be getting a sibling.   

 

She clicks her phone to check the timer. Two minutes, thirty-three seconds.  Maybe she should just go to the kitchen and hang out with Jake and Hanna while she waits.  That’d be better than just sitting here. But she can’t seem to move.

 

It’s so different than the last time. This time they’ve been planning, they’ve been actually trying to have another child. It’s exciting, but it’s also terrifying. What if it didn’t work? She loves Hanna so much, so much it still manages to take her breath away, but what if that was it? She wasn’t equipped to deal with that just yet.

 

Which is why she’s preparing for the worst. Why she’s convinced she won’t be pregnant.

 

She’s just about to get up and join the bagel party down the hall when she sees something move out of the corner of her eye. She grabs the first test, the one with the digital screen. Where it used to be blank there’s now just one word.

 

Pregnant.

 

“No way,” she whispers. “No freaking way.”

 

It’s gotta be a false positive.

 

But just as she tries to calm herself down, she sees the next test begin to show two pink lines, then the next one. After about thirty seconds all five tests say the same thing.

 

Amy Santiago is pregnant.

 

“Oh my god.”

 

She’s actually  _ pregnant. _ There is a tiny human growing inside her. Right now. She brings her hand up to her mouth as she lets out a laugh. 

 

However, the laugh is almost immediately replaced with a groan as she realizes one thing:

 

Jake is never gonna let her live this down.

 

She gathers the tests and puts them back in the bag before making her way down the hall, trying to think of a way to tell Jake while still managing to save some face.

 

As soon as she rounds the corner, Jake looks up from his bagel and raises his eyebrows expectantly.

 

Amy lets out a sigh, but she can’t help but smile as she holds up the bag. 

 

“You’re  _ so  _ not allowed to gloat about this…”

 

Jake breaks into a smile so wide it takes up his entire face.

 

“Really?”

 

Amy nods, her smile now matching his. “Really.”

 

He jumps out of his chair, practically tripping over it as he races over to Amy and lifts her up into a bone-crushing hug.

 

“You’re pregnant?” he breathes as he sets her down. 

 

“Mmhmm,” Amy nods, her eyes now filled with tears. “We’re having a baby.” He gives her a gentle kiss as he places a hand on her stomach and slides it around to her back. 

 

“Oh and guess what?” he asks after they break apart.

 

“What?” 

 

He smirks. 

 

“I was right.”

 

Amy’s too excited to be even a little mad.

 

\----

 

_ 8 weeks _

 

“Well Amy, congratulations,” Dr. Marino says as she walks back into the examination room wheeling a small ultrasound cart in front of her.

 

Amy pops up onto her elbows. “I’m really pregnant?”

 

“You’re really pregnant.” she repeats, giving Amy a warm smile.

 

“I’ve never been so glad to be right in my entire life,” Jake says with a smirk before leaning down to kiss her.

 

Amy kisses him back, but as soon as they pull apart she narrows her eyes.

 

“That’s your only one for the rest of the day.”

 

“Deal,” he quips before planting another quick peck on her lips. He looks back up at the doctor. “How far along is she?”

 

“We’re about to find out,” Dr. Marino replies. “The tests didn’t give an exact answer, so I want to do an ultrasound to be sure. But I’m guessing around eight weeks.”

 

“How did the tests not give an exact answer?” Amy asks, concerned. “Is something wrong?”

 

“Oh no.” Dr. Marino shakes her head as she sits beside Amy. “I’m just wondering, do multiples run in your family?”

 

Amy’s eyes widen. Of all the things the doctor could have asked, that particular question never crossed her mind.

 

“Uh, yeah actually,” she responds. “I have twin brothers. And my grandma is a twin.”

 

“That’s what I thought.” Dr. Marino pulls the ultrasound cart over to where she’s sitting and begins to set it up. Amy can feel the wild look in her eyes as she looks up at Jake from the examination table. But Jake is too focused on the ultrasound monitor, too excited to be paying attention.

 

“So are you saying…” Amy starts before looking back to Dr. Marino. “Are you saying, it could be  _ twins _ ?”

 

That got Jake’s attention. He snaps his gaze away from the screen to look at Dr. Marino. “WHAT?”

 

The doctor chuckles as she pulls out the wand. “I’m not certain, we’ll know once we do the ultrasound. But based on your hormone levels I’d say it’s a definite possibility. Alright Amy, you ready?”

 

Amy nods numbly as the ultrasound begins.

 

“Twins...” she whispers. But before she can even begin to panic she feels someone, Jake, grab her hand. She looks up to see his goofy grin and instantly begins to relax. 

 

“Alright the image should show up on the screen any...Ah ha! I was right,” Dr. Marino says, a hint triumphant. 

 

Sure enough not one, but two little peanut blobs were on the screen instead of one.

 

A laugh escapes Amy’s mouth as watches the screen. 

 

“Would you look at that,” she breathes. Her heart is racing, but not out of panic. Not anymore. Because those are her  _ babies.  _ Her beautiful, incredible, teeny tiny babies.

 

“I know,” Jake says, and even though she can’t see him she can actually hear his smile. “God, those Santiago genes are STRONG.”

 

Amy opens her mouth to give him some sort of snarky response but is cut off by competing whooshing sounds that seem to fill the room.

 

The heartbeats.

 

Her breath hitches in the back of her throat. She’s pretty sure she can hear Jake crying beside her, but she can’t seem to take her eyes off the screen. The heartbeats combined with the ultrasound are so overwhelming in the absolute best way. 

 

Those are her  _ babies!! _

 

After a moment Jake clears his throat.    
  
“So, do you know if they’re identical or -- what’s the other one? Nocturnal?”

 

“Fraternal?” Amy corrects with a giggle. 

 

Dr. Marino smiles as she points to the screen. “See this outer circle? That’s the placenta. Since the fetuses are sharing one, they’re identical. And based on this and your other tests, I’d put you at exactly eight weeks.”

 

“Wow, identical…” Jake says. Suddenly his eyes light up. “Like Fred and George, Ames!”

 

Amy grins. God, she loves that man.

 

The rest of the appointment is filled with more information than even Amy could have prepared for, including what felt like a billion potential health risks. Afterwards Amy leaves feeling incredibly overwhelmed.

 

They’re sitting in the parking garage, but Jake has yet to start the car.

 

“We can do this, right?” Amy asks, breaking the silence as she looks at him with what she knows is a very panicked expression.

 

“Are you kidding?” Jake whips his head around to look at her. “We’ve caught how many bad guys? We’ve got this in the bag.”

 

“Jake…”

 

“Okay, you’re not convinced,” he says. He grabs her hand and begins rubbing circles with his thumb. “Hey, remember when we managed to get Hanna through her colicky phase without killing each other? Or when we flew to see your parents and got her to stop crying only 15 minutes into the flight instead of 2 hours like when we went to visit Lucas? Or when we figured out how to use that stupid baby wrap thing without strangling you or the baby?”

 

Amy giggles at the memory. They’d spent a whole afternoon just trying to figure out how it was supposed to look, and then the first time they tried to wrap it on her body it got wrapped around her waist so it looked more like a diaper than a baby carrier. 

 

“See, if we can make it through all of that, then there’s no doubt in my mind that we can do this too,” Jake says, his voice steady. “Okay? Because you and me, babe? We can do anything.”

 

One corner of her mouth slides up into a smile. So they were doing this. 

 

Two babies. Three kids. 

 

Why the hell not?

 

“Damn straight we can.”

 

\----

 

_ 9 weeks 2 days _

 

When Amy had been pregnant with Hanna, she really didn’t start to show until her second trimester. She’d been able to wear her pantsuits and everything until the fourth or fifth month, and they’d been able to keep her pregnancy a secret until they were ready to share with the world.

 

That’s not the case for this pregnancy.

 

It’s barely been two weeks since she found out she’s pregnant and she’s already showing. Her sergeant’s uniform is getting increasingly tight around her middle, which wouldn’t be that big of a deal except that she almost popped a button trying to put on her shirt this morning. She hasn’t even attempted the pants yet, but it’s not looking promising.

 

When they’d told Holt about the pregnancy he’d said she could go back to wearing her normal dress clothes whenever she needed to, but both her and Jake had been hoping to hold off until the 12 week mark like last time.

 

Yeah, that’s not gonna happen.

 

“We’ve gotta tell the squads,” Amy huffs as she throws her pants on the bed.

 

“What?” Jake pokes his head out from the bathroom. “What happened to waiting?”

 

“Look at me,” she says, pointing to the buttons straining across her belly. “These children are demanding to make their presence known. And the minute I walk in anything other than my uniform Charles is gonna figure it out. He and Rosa already know I have ‘food poisoning.’”

 

She puts air quotes over food poisoning. 

 

“True, the man is still way overly involved in our personal lives,” says Jake. “And you do kinda look like you swallowed a balloon.”

 

“Watch it, Peralta…”

 

“But you’re the cutest little balloon ever!” he adds quickly. “I love you. You’re beautiful. We should tell them. I love you.”

 

She rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling. 

 

“Love you too, loser.”

 

\--

 

After dropping Hanna off at daycare, the two of them stroll into the precinct. Amy’s wearing one of her maternity pantsuits she had from when she was pregnant the first time. If you didn’t know her, you wouldn’t think anything of it. 

 

But as soon as they walk into the detective’s bullpen, everyone stops what they’re doing. 

 

“Amy’s in a pantsuit. I repeat, Amy is in a pantsuit!” Gina announces. “Pound the alarms!”

 

“That’s not just any pantsuit,” says Charles, causing Amy and Jake to glance sideways at each other. Of course he knows her maternity suits from her regular ones. “There’s something different about this one. I just can’t put my finger on it.”

 

“Good morning, Detectives,” says Holt as he exits his office. “Santiago, I see you have decided to refrain from wearing your sergeant’s uniform for the remainder of of your pregnancy as I suggested. I assume this means you have told both of your squads?”

 

Charles lets out a strangled cry.

 

“WHAT?!”

 

“I knew you didn’t have food poisoning, dum dum,” says Rosa as a small smile flickers across her face. She reaches her hand out to Gina, who reluctantly hands her a twenty. 

 

Amy closes her eyes. Damnit, Captain.

 

“Not exactly…” Jake says with a huff of frustration. “We were getting to that part.”

 

Amy sighs as she looks out at the squad. “But it’s true, we’re expecting. And…” she looks up at Jake who gives her a reassuring smile. “It’s twins. Identical twins, actually.”

 

“Damn, Amy,” Gina says, impressed.

 

“Whoa,” whistles Rosa.

 

“This is the best day of my life,” sobs Charles.

 

But it’s Terry’s reaction that wins.

 

“You’re like Terry and Sharon, but reversed! This is amazing!”

 

If it’s possible, Jake gets even more excited.

 

\----

 

_ 17 weeks 5 days _

 

“Look Hanna!” Jake exclaims, pointing to the picture in Amy’s hand. “There are the babies.”

 

“ _ Those _ are babies?” Hanna asks, completely unconvinced. The entire squad stifles a laugh. 

 

“Yeah mija,” Amy says gently. “That’s a picture of the babies in Mama’s tummy! Isn’t that cool?”

 

Hanna looks up at her from her perch in Jake’s arms. “Really?”

 

“Yep,”says Jake. “You see the heads? And there’s a foot, and a hand. You see them?” Hanna nods. “Those are the babies. They’re still growing, so they look a little different. But when they come out they’ll look just like all the other babies you’ve seen.”

 

“Oh,” Hanna says. “Are they girl babies?”

 

“Are they? Are they girl babies?” asks Charles, who’s practically jumping with excitement. 

 

“Yeah, Jake. Is Terry gonna be able to buy the fancy yogurt tomorrow?” Terry asks.

 

“No, but I’m gonna be able to buy a new axe,” says Rosa.

“And I’m buying Iggy a new pair of Jordans,” adds Gina.

 

Amy gives Jake a look. It had been his idea to swing by the precinct after picking Hanna up from daycare so they could share the news. She would’ve been perfectly happy to wait until Monday, but he had been so excited she couldn’t refuse. Besides, better to get it done now than endure the five billion texts they’d get if they waited.

 

“Look a little closer…” she says, handing the picture to Terry. The entire squad gathers around the image, looking for any clues. It’s quiet for a couple seconds, then...

 

“Aww they’re boys,” says Charles, a tad disappointed. “How was I wrong again? The shape of Amy’s pelvic floor…”

 

“Charles…” Jake warns.

 

“Right, sorry.”

 

“Ha ha, you owe me fifty bucks,” says Rosa, punching Charles in the arm.

 

“And I believe you owe me two weeks of overtime,” says Holt, appearing behind the squad without any warning. 

 

“Captain!” Amy exclaims. Her cheeks immediately begin to warm. “You made a bet this time?”

 

“Yes, I admit I took part in the festivities this year.” He plucks the photo out of Terry’s hand and takes a closer look. “The fetuses look well developed for this stage in your gestation period. Congratulations, detectives.”

 

He hands the photo back to Amy before returning to his office. 

 

“I can’t believe the Captain just used the phrase gestation period,” says Rosa, wrinkling her nose.

 

“I can’t believe he saw the inside of your uterus,” says Jake, half disgusted and half in awe of what just happened.

 

“I know,” Amy says, grinning. “And he knew we were having boys! He knows us so well.”

 

“Boys?” Hanna asks, tugging on Jake’s jacket. “They boy babies?”

 

Jake kisses Hanna’s cheek. “Yep, you’re gonna have two little brothers to play with. How’s that sound?”

 

Amy holds her breath. Hanna had been hoping for sisters. She’s sure a meltdown is inevitable.

 

“Will they play turtles with me?” Hanna asks tentatively.

 

“Psshaw, of course they will!” Jake exclaims. “And you can teach them all about the Turtles and their super awesome ninja skills.”

 

Hanna ponders this for a moment before nodding. “Okay. But I get to be Don-tello.”

 

“Deal,” Jake smiles. He looks up at Amy. “How great is our kid? Only three years old and already has a favorite Ninja Turtle. I’ve never been more proud.” He gasps. “We can all be Ninja Turtles for Halloween! And you can be April, their trusty human companion!”

 

“Ooh yeah Mama!” Hanna exclaims. “April’s smart. Just like you.”

 

Amy melts at the compliment. “Thanks Mija.”

 

Across from them Gina gives Rosa a look.

 

“What a weird, nerdy little family.”

 

Rosa’s lips curl up into what might be the softest smile Amy’s ever seen.

 

“Yeah, but they’re  _ our _ nerdy little family.”

 

\----

 

_ 25 days 3 days _

 

“Hey Jennings,” Amy calls from her desk.  Within seconds he’s standing right in front of her desk, his unwavering smile plastered on his face.

 

“Yes Sergeant?”

 

“Did you take those case files up to Holt yesterday? He just called me and said he didn’t receive them.”

 

Gary’s smile falters. “Yes ma’am, I took them up before I went to lunch.  Want me to go up and check with him?”

 

Amy sighs. “No, I can do it. I need to discuss something else with him anyway.”

 

“Are you sure?” Gary asks, a worried look flickering across his face. “I don’t mind. I know you’ve been ti --”

 

Amy raises her eyebrows as Gary’s eyes trail down to her ever-expanding belly.

 

“You wanna finish that sentence, Jennings?” she asks coolly.

 

“Busy,” he says quickly.  “You’ve really busy. Mmhmm. That’s what I was gonna say.”

 

“I’m just fine,” she assures him as she awkwardly pushes out of her chair. It takes her longer than she would have liked, particularly with Jennings watching her so closely, but she does it. 

 

“See? Not too busy. Or tired.” she adds with a knowing smile.

 

“Yes ma’am,” Gary says as she walks past him to the elevators. 

 

If she’s being honest, she has been feeling a little off today.  She’s exhausted, thanks to the babies kicking up a storm all night. While the kicking was exciting at first, it had been much less so when she got a foot to the spine or when they started kicking each other at three am. Then once she got to work she’d been dealing with what she assumed were Braxton Hicks contractions, which hurt more than she’d care to admit.

 

But was she about to tell Gary that? Hell no.

 

By the time she gets up to the detective floor she’s already out of breath, which is weird, even for her.  She slowly makes her way to the bullpen, where Jake is sitting at his desk discussing something with Rosa. His eyebrows are furrowed, his lips pressed in a firm line as he reads whatever’s in the file on his desk. 

 

However upon hearing the bullpen gate swing open, Jake looks up, and immediately his look of concentration is replaced with delight when he sees Amy approaching his station.

 

“Hey babe,” he says with a smile. “What are you doing up here?”

 

“Holt’s missing some files from the Zeller case. One of my officers supposedly brought them up but --” She’s cut off by one of the strongest contractions yet. Her breath hitches in the back of her throat as she clutches Jake’s desk for support.

 

“Ames?” Jake asks, concern laced in his voice. “You okay?”

 

“Yeah,” she says, but her voice is strained as she tries to breathe through the pain. “Braxton-Hicks. I’ve had them all morning. It’s fine.”

 

“You sure?” he asks. “Because you don’t look fine. Maybe you should take the rest of the day off.”

 

Amy lets out a huff of frustration as she stands back up. “You sound like Gary. I’m honestly fine. I can take care of myself.”

 

“I know you can,” he says, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. “But I also know your officers can last one afternoon without you if you need to rest.”

 

She squeezes back before letting go. “I’ll think about it.”

 

And with that she slowly makes her way to Captain Holt’s office.  

 

The whole exchange takes all of five minutes, as the files accidentally got placed in the mess that is Gina’s desk. Amy can’t help but be relieved. If the files had gone missing it would have fallen on her and she’s not sure she could handle another setback this morning.

 

As soon as she opens the door to Holt’s office to leave, Jake once again looks up from his desk.

 

“How’d it go?”

 

“Fine,” Amy says with a sigh. He’s trying to be supportive, she knows that, but right now all she wants is to be left alone.  

 

She’s almost to her old desk when another contraction rips through her, this one five times more intense than the ones she’s had before. She lunges forward and grabs the empty chair. It takes everything she has not to cry out in the middle of the precinct.

 

“Amy!” Jake exclaims, jumping out of his chair to help her.  

 

Her vision starts to blur and her head feels heavy and her belly keeps contracting. She needs to sit down. 

 

Something is definitely not right.

 

“Jake?” she practically whimpers. Panic fills her voice. “Something’s...wrong…”

“It’s okay, Ames. I’ve got you...Ames?”

 

She can barely see, barely feel anything as a sea of voices call out around her.

 

“Call 911!”

 

“Already did. They’re on their way.”

 

“Amy, baby, listen to me okay? You’ve got to stay awake. I love you so much but you need to stay awake.” 

 

She knows Jake’s talking to her, but he sounds so far away. Where’d he go? And how’d she end up on the floor?

 

Another contraction. 

 

She can’t help it, she lets out a cry of pain.

 

“Jake...the babies…” 

 

“Shhh, I know. They’re gonna be okay. You’re gonna be okay.”

 

He sounds like he’s crying. 

 

Amy tries to respond, to comfort him, but before she can everything goes black.

 

\--

 

Amy wakes up alone in a hospital room. Her head feels foggy and she’s exhausted but otherwise she feels okay. Instinctively she runs her hand over her belly, letting out a sigh of relief as she feels the familiar curve against her palm. 

 

“Hey there.”

 

Amy pulls her eyes off her belly to see Jake watching her from the doorway, a relieved smile on his face. 

 

“Hi,” she sighs. “What happened?”

 

He makes his way into the room and takes his seat beside her bed. 

 

“You went into early labor and your blood pressure tanked,” he says, taking her hand and rubbing familiar circles with his thumb. “They managed to stop the contractions before you were too far along, but it was...really close.”

 

His voice breaks. 

 

Panic fills Amy’s chest as she brings her hand back to her belly. 

 

“Are the babies okay?” 

 

Jake places his hand on top of hers. 

 

“They’re perfect,” he says, his eyes locking onto hers in an attempt to assure her. “They were in distress for a hot second but you kept them safe.”

 

“No I didn’t,” she says as tears form in her eyes. “I shouldn’t have come into work today. I didn’t feel good the minute I woke up and I knew it. If I hadn’t come in, this wouldn’t have happened.” 

 

“Hey…” Jake whispers, running a hand through her hair. “Don’t do that. The doctor said this probably would have happened regardless. And actually, it’s better that you were at the precinct rather than by yourself at home.”

 

“Really?” 

 

“Yeah. I don’t even wanna think about what would have happened if we hadn’t been able to get you here so fast.” Jake shakes his head before leaning over and kissing her temple. She closes her eyes at his touch and feels a tear fall down her cheek. 

 

“I was so scared,” he whispers against her forehead. He leans back into his chair. “I’m so glad you’re all okay. I love you so much. All three of you.”

 

They’re safe. Her babies are alive and safe and everything is gonna be okay.

 

Amy gives him a watery, but genuine, smile. 

 

“We love you too.”

 

\----

 

_ 33 weeks 4 days _

 

After the incident at the precinct Amy is put on strict bed rest, meaning she’s basically confined to the couch or the bed at all times. 

 

Holt had made it so that she could work from home, but even still, there’s only so much you can do for the NYPD from your couch.  She couldn’t hold Hanna so she still went to daycare or Jake’s mom’s during the week, so Amy was home alone for the majority of the day. And while she knows it’s what she has to do to keep her babies healthy, it still blows to be stuck in your house. 

 

In an effort to keep herself busy, Amy tries to use the time to complete different tasks she’d put off since Hanna’d been born.  She makes five scrapbooks, one for each year of Hanna’s life and one for each of the years she and Jake dated pre-child. She orders the rest of the stuff they need for the babies and makes the registry for their families. She buys and wraps all of her Christmas presents. She organizes her computer, updates her baby, home, family,  _ and _ work binders, and finally watches The Office all the way through like she’s always wanted. 

 

But after eight weeks of feeling like a mix between a whale and a sloth, she has officially lost her goddamn mind.  

 

She had tried to lean over to put on her socks, but her giant belly got in the way (she seriously can’t remember the last time she could see her feet. Or her vag.) and she couldn’t get them on and now her feet were cold and she was a grown ass woman she should be able to get her socks on her own damn feet!

 

So naturally she bursts into tears. And real ones too, not just a couple of teardrops but the type of sobs that make your whole body shake.

 

This sucks. She just wants to hold her babies and walk around and put her own socks on whenever she wants. Is that too much to ask?

 

“Ames?”

 

“Mama?”

 

Shit.

 

She quickly wipes her eyes and tries to make it look like she  _ wasn’t _ just crying her eyes out. But when Jake walks into the living room all it takes is one look at her for him to rush over to the couch.

 

“What’s wrong? Are you having contractions? I can call Dr. Marino on our way to the hospital…”

 

Amy places a hand on his chest.

 

“No I’m fine. I promise. The babies are fine. Kicking like crazy, but no, they’re okay.”

 

“Then what’s wrong?”

 

Amy tosses her head back and tries not to start crying again.

 

“I just...I couldn’t get my socks on,” she admits. She feels the tears forming. “And I know it’s stupid and not that big of a deal but I’m just so sick of not being able see my feet and not being able to do all this stuff. I mean, it’s what’s best for the babies, and I want to keep them safe more than anything, but  _ God _ I just wanna be able to walk more than five feet or go outside or  _ put my own damn socks on _ without it being a huge deal.”

 

She’s crying again, but before she can try to apologize Jake pulls her into a hug. 

 

“You’re so freaking awesome,” he whispers into her ear. 

 

Amy scoffs into his shoulder. “I just lost it over socks. I don’t think that counts as awesome.”

 

“I’m serious,” he says. “I know it’s been hard but you’ve done so well.”

 

She pulls back and gives him a look. “Really?”

 

“Really,” he repeats. “Ames, this is literally the first time I’ve heard you complain in eight weeks. You’ve put our kids first this entire time, never even uttered a peep when the doctor told you you’d have to be on bed rest, and you’ve gotten so much work done it’s honestly not fair. AND you’ve still been such a great mom to Hanna. Everyday when I pick her up she can’t wait to get home to you. If it weren’t so cute it’d be insulting.”

 

Amy lets out a shaky laugh.

 

“Speaking of the little bear,” she says as she wipes her eyes. “Where’d she go?”

 

“I told her to go pick out pajamas,” replies Jake. He gives Amy a mischievous grin. “We’re going on an adventure.”

 

Amy feels her face fall. “Oh. Well that’ll be fun. Where are you taking her?”

 

Jake’s eyes widen as he backtracks. “No no no, WE. As in all three of us. Well, five if you count the boys.”

 

“But I can’t go anywhere,” says Amy, puzzled.

 

“No, you can’t stand up,” Jake replies, correcting her. “But you  _ can _ sit. In a car. While looking at Christmas lights.”

 

“Wait what? I’m still confused.”

 

Jake laughs as he takes her hand. “You, me, and Han are going to put on our jammies, get in the car and drive to all the best Christmas lights displays in Brooklyn. I have all our favorite snacks, a playlist full of the greatest Christmas jams, and your doctor’s approval,” he adds. 

 

Her jaw drops, and suddenly she’s smiling so hard she wouldn’t be surprised if her face broke in half. She takes his head into her hands and kisses him. Hard. 

 

When they break apart their foreheads stay together, her hands moving to play with the hair at the nape of his neck.

 

“I love you so much, Jake Peralta.”

 

“I love you too, Amy Santiago.”

 

They sit up just as Hanna bursts into the living room carrying her Moana pajama set.

 

“Mama!” she cries as she launches onto the couch and onto Amy’s lap. “I missed you! Daddy said we can wear our jammies in the car. Can we?”

 

“I missed you too,” Amy says, planting a kiss in her daughter’s hair. “And yes, we’re all gonna wear our jammies.”

 

“Even you?” Hanna asks, her eyes wide.

 

Amy grins. “Even me.”

 

Hanna gasps and claps her hands together in excitement before running back to her room for...something.

 

Amy leans into Jake’s side as Hanna’s excited squeals echo through the hallway.

 

“Thank you,” she murmurs. She can already feel the stress of earlier melt off of her. “For everything.”

 

Jake hugs her side and places his other hand on her belly.

 

“Always.”

 

\----

 

_ 37 weeks 4 days _

 

For the first time in days Amy wakes to the sun shining through the bedroom window.  She hadn’t even realized she’d fallen asleep; she still has a pacifier in one hand from the last time she’d woken up. Which was only two hours ago, according to her alarm clock.  

 

She rolls over and sees Hanna’s still fast asleep, her tiny body still sprawled out in the middle of the bed. Amy knew this would happen as soon as Hanna insisted on sleeping with her parents to celebrate Amy’s first night home from the “hostipal”, but how could she say no to that face? 

 

However the space next to Hanna was unoccupied with the sheets balled up at the end of the bed.  

 

Slowly,  _ slowly _ Amy extracts herself from her daughter’s grip before sliding out of the covers. She hisses as she sits up and feels a painful twinge in her abdomen. Anyone who says c-sections are the easy way out can go straight to hell. 

 

She grabs one of Jake’s hoodies off the floor and slips it over her tank top as she pads down the hallway towards the nursery. There’s a soft light coming from underneath the door which means Jake is in there, just as she expected. 

 

She can hear him before she reaches the door.  He’s talking in low, soft tones, in a voice so pure and sweet it makes Amy want to cry for the billionth time since the boys were born. Amy pauses just outside the door, not wanting to interrupt Jake’s moment. Through the crack she can just make out Jake’s profile.  He’s in the rocker with one of the babies wide awake in his arms. Gabe. She’s pretty sure it’s Gabe.

 

“Gabriel Raymond Santiago,” Jake murmurs. (YES.) “You’re so awesome, you know that?” Gabe snorts. “Of course you know. You’re the product of two amazing detectives/geniuses. But yeah, you and your brother and sister are pretty much the best things that ever happened to me. I love you three so much, more than all the Die Hards combined. And as you’ll learn, that’s, like, a lot.”

 

Amy puts her hand to her mouth, trying and failing to stifle a giggle. Four days old and he’s already teaching them about Die Hard.

 

“And I love your mama too,” Jake continues. “Even if she’s awake when she’s supposed to be asleep.”

 

He looks right at Amy with a smirk. Busted. 

 

Amy pushes the door open and steps inside, a sheepish grin etched across her face.

 

“Morning.”

 

Jake raises his eyebrows. “I told you I’d get the next one.”

 

“I know,” she sighs as she makes her way to the rocker. Gabe looks up at her with Jake’s eyes and all of the pain she’d felt a moment ago vanishes. She leans down and kisses the baby on the head. “But once I was up I couldn’t stay away.”

 

“Can’t say I blame you. They’re pretty irresistible,” says Jake. He draws his eyes away from the baby to look at Amy. “How you feelin’?”

 

“Better,” she says as she stands back up. “I mean I’m sore, but these two make it hard to be in too much pain.”

 

“That’s fair. But I wish you’d go back to bed. You’re supposed to be taking it easy.”

 

“And leave you with all the fun? I don’t think so.”

 

A tiny cry comes from the crib to Jake’s right. Amy crosses the room to see Sam’s arm reaching out of his swaddler, as if he knew she was coming. 

 

It’s weird; Amy knew they were identical twins, obviously, but it still throws her off to see what looked like the exact same baby as the one in Jake’s arms looking up at her. Sam’s three ounces heavier and Gabe has a birthmark on his ankle but other than that they were truly, well, identical. 

 

“Hey Sammy boy,” she whispers as she picks him up. “Feeling a little left out are we?”

 

“Yeah Mama, how dare you talk to Daddy for more than two seconds?” Jake asks, talking for the baby.

 

“I know, I know,” she says, nuzzling Sam’s head with her cheek.  He responds by making little fishy faces with his lips. “Let’s get you some food, yeah?”

 

“Oh thanks. I’ll have pancakes, please. And bacon, extra crunchy.”

 

Amy looks up to see Jake grinning at her. She gives him a playful glare.

 

“I just birthed two children. Breakfast is on you, buddy.”

 

“I mean I  _ guess _ that’s fair.”

 

She squeezes Jake’s shoulder before heading out the bedroom door and towards the kitchen, never taking her eyes off the baby still whimpering in her arms.  She’d forgotten just how  _ small _ they are in the beginning. Hanna was tiny enough and she was full term. But the boys were three weeks early, making them that much smaller, that much more delicate. It’s terrifying. 

 

“But so far so good, right mijo?” she murmurs as she prepares his bottle (one handed, thank you very much). “We’re almost done with our first night, can you believe it?”

 

Sam lets out an impatient squawk in response. 

 

“I know. You’ll believe me once you have food in your belly.”

 

Amy finishes making the bottle in record time and pops it into Sam’s mouth before heading back to the bedroom.  

 

“See, we’re doing just fine. Yeah we are,” she coos as the crying is replaced with satisfied snorts and grunts. She stops when she reaches the door to their room. 

 

“Okay Sam. We’re gonna go lay down in Mama’s bed. But we can only go in if you  _ promise _ not to wake your sister. She needs sleep, too. Okay?” Sam blinks, too focused on eating to care about anything else.  “I’ll take that as a yes.”

 

She pushes open the door to see the bed has gained another occupant. Sitting up against the bedframe with Hanna nestled into his side is Jake, a sleeping Gabe curled up on his chest. One of his arms is wrapped around Hanna’s tiny frame while the other rubs the baby’s back. He’s mesmerized, watching Gabe with such intensity he doesn’t even realize Amy’s in the room. 

 

The sight alone is enough to set off the waterworks.

 

It’s not until Amy reaches the bed that he looks up, giving her a sleepy smile as she slowly,  _ slooowly _ , settles onto the bed. 

 

Her face must give her pain away, because Jake’s smile is quickly replaced with worry. 

 

“You good?” he mouths. 

 

She nods, shifting as she finds a position that works for both her and Sam. Jake reaches over and runs a finger over Sam’s hair before giving Amy’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. Amy kisses his hand, relishing the moment of stillness in the early morning.

 

“Love you,” Jake whispers. 

 

In that moment, with a baby in each of their arms and their little girl in the middle, Amy decides she would go through all of it, all of the pain and the bed rest and the whale-like body again for these four humans sprawled across the bed. For this family she and Jake created. 

 

Because for this? The feeling of indescribable love and happiness she’s had for the last four days knowing her family is complete and whole and healthy and  _ hers _ ? Well for that she’d do just about anything.

 

“Love you too.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> (Sam's full name is Samuel Jacob but I couldn't find a good way to slip that in. Amy named Sam and Jake named Gabe. Now you know.)
> 
> Also, if you liked this fic at all PLEASE feel free to drop a kudos or a comment, they always make my day (just ask my roommate). Thanks, pals!


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